


Starlight

by TheTrickyOwl



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Space, IN SPACE!, M/M, McReyes Summer Event, McReyes Week
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-01
Updated: 2017-07-01
Packaged: 2018-11-22 00:47:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,106
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11369076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheTrickyOwl/pseuds/TheTrickyOwl
Summary: Of all the goddamn ships that Jesse McCree could have chosen from on that docking bay, it had to be this one.For the McReyes Summer Event Week Day 7: Starlight





	Starlight

“You ready to talk, yet?”

From the corner of the tiny cell he’d been crammed into a few hours before, the voice that addressed Jesse McCree was a deep, silken growl that reverberated off the glistening chrome and iron. He lifted his head slowly, neck straining from the position, and regarded the dark figure with an exhausted glare. He had never been thrown into a prison like this—the air sharp and cool and scenting of metal and hinge oil, like most deep space warships did. Three of the four walls were forged of solid steel a good three inches thick, and the entryway? Fucking cruel, is what it was. No door, no bars, just a broad, empty space between the walls that you could have strolled right on through if you were idiot enough to believe it would have been that easy. Jesse was no fool, though, and had seen the faint shimmer of energy in the entryway, had felt the electric heat from the invisible current. It made every hair on his body stand on end, and sent a crackle of discomfort down his spine.

If he walked through it? Pop, boom, sizzle. In that order. He’d be rendered to a pile of ash.

Not his favorite way to go.

With a grunt and a quick crack of his neck, he stretched out one leg in front of him. The cell was so damn cramped that he could feel the prickle of the energy dancing through the sole of his boot as he extended it, and it made him quickly retract with a glower. The man who’d spoken was still standing there, the invisible wall of death separating them as his broad body blotted out the blue light from the corridor outside. 

Jesse drew both knees up to his chest and lay his elbows across them. Still, he said nothing. The man folded both arms over his massive chest, and the fabric of the black t-shirt he wore stretched tautly over cords of thick muscle. Jesse imagined if the energy wall didn’t exist, the guy in front of him would have served as a good enough replacement to keep his ass firmly in place. No way he was strolling passed that. 

After a minute, there was the impatient click of a tongue, before the man asked, “you got a name at least?” 

Jesse shifted, tailbone aching from sitting against the solid metal. “Nun.”

“Nun what?”

“Nun yer business.”

The man exhaled sharply through his nose, as if amused, and Jesse could have sworn he saw the corner of his mouth lift just a little. “A smartass. Cute. The Court will love you.” 

“That where yer takin’ me?” Jesse asked grimly, though he wasn’t surprised.

“You snuck onto my warship while we were docked at Lijiang Station and threatened my Second in Command with a gun. You’re lucky I’ve even spared your life this long with how eagerly she wants to tear your throat out.” The man responded.

Jesse’s brows lifted into his hairline. “ _Your_ warship?”

“Gabriel Reyes,” the man smirked fully, now. “Captain of the warship Wraith. Nice to meet you, smartass.”

Ah, shit. 

“I take it from the way the color comically drained from your face that you’ve heard of me.”

“Who hasn’t?” Jesse’s voice was tight and laced with bitterness. “You’re a war hero.”

Gabriel shrugged as if battling for the future of the literal human race wasn’t as big a deal as it sounded. Must’ve been nice to be so dismissive. “Wouldn’t call myself that. We weren’t exactly able to save Earth.” 

“You damn well tried your best,” Jesse couldn’t believe he was defending his own captor, but he wasn’t one to deny someone who led the fight for their home planet the respect they deserved. Even though Earth had been decimated in the aftermath of battle, the humans had triumphed and were able to colonize the vast reaches of space. All thanks to the jackass in front of him.

Of all the goddamn ships to have stowed away on in that docking bay. He had to choose this one.

Jesse dropped his head and swallowed hard around his fear. “How long until we reach the Court?”

“We’re actually orbiting Gibraltar Station as we speak.” Gabriel replied. “Have been for an hour, now.”

Jesse’s gaze snapped up, and the dread that filled his veins was as icy cold as the cell walls. “So, I’m done for.”

“If you want to be.”

Jesse’s eyes narrowed warily at that.

“Like I said, we’ve been orbiting for an hour. I could have at any time ordered my Second in Command to dock the ship and had the Guardians come aboard and take you into custody.” Gabriel added. “But, I decided to come down here and take a look at you for myself.” 

“Why?”

“Because you intrigue me, smartass.”

All at once, the cold wash of dread was replaced with a sudden blooming warmth that extended into every extremity, and Jesse forced himself to break eye contact with Gabriel, throat clearing subtly. “Flatterin’ as that is, darlin’, Stockholm Syndrome just doesn’t do it for me.”

“Smartass is a good nickname for you.”

“I’m sure my ass has been called worse things.”

Gabriel chuckled, and Jesse hated himself for actually enjoying the sound of it. 

“What really gets me is how easily you were able to slip aboard my ship and disarm three of my crew members all before I had the chance to notice.” One of Gabriel’s dark brows lifted. “Needless to say, I’m actually impressed. That’s no easy feat.”

“For you, maybe.” Jesse snorted, and he wasn’t sure why he was still attempting to push the guy’s buttons. 

“That’s the intriguing part. And I’m willing to bet this isn’t your first rodeo.”

“That a cowboy joke?”

“Unintentional one.” Gabriel shifted his stance, weight settling from one foot to the other. “So how about it? You talk, and I’ll see what I can do about lightening your sentence.”

Jesse folded his hands together—one of flesh and one of silver and steel. The cybernetic fingers whirred softly as he flexed them in thought, and he raked his teeth across his lower lip. What choice did he have in the matter at this point? 

When enough beats of silence passed between them, Gabriel sighed and added, “You at least hungry?”

Jesse frowned, bewildered, though the clenching in his gut hadn’t been made apparent until just now.

“Conversation tends to flow more easily over a good meal,” Gabriel explained, and Jesse watched as he lifted his hand out of his line of sight. There were soft beeping sounds, as if he was punching a code into a keypad just outside of the cell, before a loud hum sounded off and the heat from the energy wall dissipated to nothing. Gabriel extended his hand, arm passing right through without harm. “C’mon, smartass.”

Jesse could only stare warily at the hand offered to him.

“Stand or starve. Your choice.” Gabriel stated. 

Hesitantly, Jesse reached out to clasp their palms together, and let out a surprised gasp when he was hauled up onto his feet with little effort. He wasn’t a small man by any means, towering at the same height as Gabriel, with broad shoulders and long, powerful legs, and yet he’d been lifted as though he weighed nothing. His every muscle groaned in protest at the abrupt change in position, and Jesse rubbed at the back of his neck with a hiss as he was escorted out of the small cellblock and down the narrow corridor. Their bootfalls sounded off against the metal like the strike of a blacksmith’s hammer, and Jesse stiffened when he felt the cool press of a shotgun barrel against the small of his back.

“Easy. Just a precaution,” Gabriel said softly from over his shoulder, and the low timbre of his voice rolled against the shell of his ear in a way that made a shiver dance down the curve of his spine. “Much as I’d like to trust you, smartass, you did try to hijack my warship.”

“You tellin’ me that’s yer gun, sugar?” Jesse feigned a disappointed pout back at the other man. “Here I just assumed you were happy to see me.”

The gun pressed deeper into his back, though he could hear the smile in Gabriel’s voice. “You wish. Turn left up ahead and then straight on through the door at the end.”

Jesse did as commanded, and what awaited them at the end of the hallway was enough to rob the breath from his lungs. They were in a small dining area just big enough to house a crew of less than a dozen. A long slate table with no chairs in sight stretched down the length of the room, while a holovid on the nearest wall played a newscast regarding concern over the alarming increase of acid storms on Venus. Multiple white ring lights hung overhead, but it was the monstrous floor to ceiling window that took up the entirety of the opposite wall that he was drawn to. His dark eyes permeated the clear glass and to the endless stretch of starlight in the vast blackness beyond, and the overwhelming sight of Jupiter drifting silently nearby. Jesse could see the jagged silhouette of Gibraltar Station hanging in the orbit of the Gas Giant, and his throat clenched with worry as he was guided deeper into the room. When Gabriel brushed his fingertips over end of the dining table, a metal stool shimmered into existence before it, and he instructed Jesse to sit with a wave of his shotgun. 

“We don’t have much in terms of a full supper. Crew and I were in the middle of supply run to Mars when you came aboard.” Gabriel explained as he rounded toward what looked to be a refrigerator, and the jarring interior light caused Jesse to squint when he popped the door open. “Best I can do for you is a sandwich.”

“Beggars can’t be choosers.” Jesse replied with a shrug. “You got coffee at least?”

“No self-respecting Captain would ever fly without coffee onboard.” 

Jesse found himself smiling fondly at that, and he cast his eyes toward the window once more as Gabriel moved about behind him. Even in the years since humans had colonized the Solar System and beyond, the sight of a countless multitude of stars still left him stunned. Their silence, their stillness, and the presence of their unyielding company anytime he’d glance upward had always been an odd sort of comfort. Many a thing had let Jesse McCree down in life, but the stars never had. 

“Quite the view, huh?” Gabriel suddenly cut in after some time, mirroring Jesse’s own thoughts. “Never get tired of it.”

Jesse nodded slowly, eyes still trained out the window. He was seeking out the constellations, taking mental note of the ship’s changing direction in accordance to their positions as it drifted lazily in orbit. 

“Makes you feel small,” he spoke at last. “And yet, not insignificant. When I look out there, I feel like I can do anythin’. Be anyone. Like I ain’t got a single fear in me.”

“That why you tried to steal my ship?” Gabriel asked, though not cruelly. 

Jesse dropped his eyes, then, and swallowed. “Opposite, actually. I came aboard because I was downright terrified.”

When no response came from behind him, Jesse scrubbed a hand over his bearded jaw, suddenly embarrassed. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Gabriel slowly approach before a steaming mug of dark coffee was placed within his line of sight. Jesse smiled weakly as both hands came up to cradle the warm mug with a murmur of thanks. There was a soft clatter to his side, and he glanced over to see a simple ham and cheese sandwich with all the fixin’s on the dining table. Jesse snatched it up and began to eat, unconcerned with the soft whir of a second stool being summoned at his side. Gabriel lowered his weight onto it, watching closely. 

“Who were you running from?” Gabriel asked softly.

Jesse stopped mid-chew, cheeks stuffed with bread and lettuce and just the right amount of garlic mayo. “Wha—” He coughed, and forced himself to wash down his bite with a swig of coffee before speaking. He wiped the crumbs from his lips with the back of his hand. “What makes you ask that?”

“You eat like you haven’t seen food in days.”

“I’m just hungry s’all.”

“You also _look_ like you haven’t seen food in days.”

Jesse frowned down at his sandwich. “Food’s hard to come by out here.”

Gabriel, who had his own mug of coffee, shook his head. “Not if you have a home. Every Station in the system is properly stocked with everything from medical supplies, to clothing, to meats and produce freshly selected and grown from the fields of Mars. If you don’t eat, that means you don’t stick around in a place long enough to.”

“Ain’tcha just full o’wisdom,” Jesse grumbled against the crust in his hand. 

“I just know a bullshitter when I see one,” Gabriel smirked, even as a glare was shot his way. He took a little sip from his coffee. “Spill, smartass. That was our deal.”

Once the last bite of sandwich was devoured and washed down, Jesse slumped forward until his elbows could rest against the slate table. On the surface of his coffee, his eyes locked onto the shimmering reflection of the stars. “When I was a kid, I ran with a nasty group of guys. Call ‘emselves the Deadlock Rebels. Ain’t nothin’ but a bunch of bigheaded troublemakers, mostly. Thieves, scavengers—”

“Criminals.” Gabriel cut in with a frown. “I’ve heard of them.”

“Yeah, well…” Jesse raked his hand back through his tousled bangs. “They didn’t start out that way, but as time went on, scavengin’ then turned to stealin’, then the stealin’ escalated to them dabblin’ in the black market, dealin’ with drug and weapons distribution from Station to Station, anythin’ that’d make ‘em feel good and still line their pockets at the end of the day. It was years before I had the courage to get out, but it came with a price.”

Jesse looked down grimly at the cybernetic limb that gleamed in the starlight.

Gabriel was breathless, horrified. “They took your fucking arm?”

“Could’a been worse,” Jesse shrugged. “But, I wasn’t willin’ to find out what would’ve happened if I encountered them a second time. When I spotted a few of ‘em at Lijiang Station, I panicked, and made for the first docked ship I could get into. Hoped I’d be able to commandeer it, I guess, just long enough to get away. Would’a gotten off and given the Wraith back at the next Station I passed if ya’ll didn’t capture my ass. I didn’t mean any trouble.”

Gabriel was quiet, gaze fixed onto the cybernetic arm as it rested against the table between them. Jesse almost wanted to retract it, to tuck it against his body and out of sight. Since the war for Earth, there were few humans left who sympathized with anyone enhanced by robotics. But, then Gabriel was reaching out, hand pausing mid-air and drawing away just a little. 

“Is it okay if I…?” He whispered.

Jesse blinked. “Uh… yeah, I s’ppose. Knock yerself out.”

The weight of Gabriel’s hand was barely felt, but enough to make Jesse’s breath hitch. He watched, silent, while Gabriel traced over the gleaming metal that made up his forearm, before traveling along each silver knuckle joint, and the layers of steel that shaped each intricate finger. Jesse turned his hand over, exposing his palm and allowing Gabriel to study it closely. He imagined that, if he wanted to, Gabriel could easily slide their hands together until their fingers entwined. 

“Do you feel anything?” Gabriel asked.

Jesse swallowed and wet his lips. “Warmth, mostly. Slight pressure, too, but not as much as if you were touchin’ skin. More like a feather brush.”

“Does it hurt?”

“Not as much as it used to.”

Gabriel hummed appreciatively before pulling back and locking their gazes. There was a quiet intensity about the Captain that Jesse couldn’t explain. Something in that look made him feel like Gabriel was chipping and peeling and tearing at every layer that Jesse had built over the years until the husk had been shed and he was left raw and naked and utterly vulnerable. Gabriel could see right through him, and it was terrifying. 

Jesse forced himself to look away and busy himself with finishing up his coffee.

“Now, what to do with you, smartass.” Gabriel murmured while scratching his beard. 

Jesse snorted as he swirled the last sip at the bottom of the mug. “Off to the Court for me, I reckon.”

“Yes. Or…” Gabriel lounged back on his stool and kicked his feet up until his massive leather boots were resting on the edge of the table. “You could just stay here.”

Jesse’s head snapped around. “Stay? As your goddamn prisoner?”

“I was thinking more as a crew member.”

Jesse could only stare for a long time. “Are… are you offerin’ me a job?”

“Been wanting to from the start, actually. You don’t effortlessly sneak onto my heavily guarded warship and disarm three highly trained crew members without piquing my interest. You’re clearly smart, resourceful, and have a decent head on your shoulders despite being a total smartass.”

“I’m a damn good shot, too. And I can navigate!” Jesse suddenly leapt onto his feet and pointed toward the window. “I can read the stars. Map courses and whatnot by their position in the sky. I’d be real useful up on the Bridge.”

“You know you don’t have to give me a pitch,” Gabriel smiled endearingly up at him. “The job is yours if you want it.”

He was breathing fast, his heart was a thunderous roar in his ears, a chaotic whirlwind of emotion despite the surrounding peace of the watchful stars. Robbed of words, Jesse could only nod eagerly, enough that his damn neck ached. 

Smiling broadly, Gabriel rose and clasped one hand on his shoulder, warm and weighted and enough to ground Jesse in place. “Welcome aboard.”

God, Jesse’s eyes were burning. His voice was thick, and he stared down at his boots so as not to make a fool of himself. “It’s McCree. Jesse McCree.”

“Hallelujah, the smartass has a name.”

When Jesse laughed, he allowed his tears to spill free and catch the starlight, knowing he's found home at last.


End file.
